The Bully's Hated Mate
The Bully’s Hated Mate – Chapter 40

CASSIA’S POV:

“Whoa!” He exclaimed as I attacked him with a hug.

I really missed him so much. I wanted to show him in every way possible that I had missed him severely. We hugged a few more times and we disengaged.

We walked to our spot in the cave, and we sat down like we normally did back when we used to come here.

I looked at him now as the moonless and yet, starlit night sky touched his features. I observed him closely to know that a lot had changed with him, a lot that I didn’t know about.

Instantly, guilt washed over me like ocean waves crashing into rocks.

“Where have you been? What have you been up to?” I decided to ask first, fearing that if I let him speak first, it may worsen the guilt I had going on for me already.

How was it that I had passed through weeks without even thinking about Marcus? Not even once as Lucius and I fought countlessly.

I never once found the need to backtrack and step foot on the other side of Shadow high. Even with everything that went on recently, I didn’t even look for him.

I’ve never felt as shitty as I was feeling now, and a major part of me knew that I deserved every piece of guilt that clawed at my throat.

We used to meet in this cave, we used to race to school — the low class side of school but it was all fun while I still schooled there and then, I had to mate with Lucius and my life got turned in a different way.

He smiled a bit, showing off his handsome face.

“Well, you know, nothing big. I’ve just missed you so much. It hurt physically. I just had to come looking for you since you wouldn’t come looking for me.”

My face instantly fell, and he noticed.

“Hey.” He said, and when I didn’t respond, he punched me a little.

I let out a pained g***n that I wasn’t able to swallow. Marcus frowned immediately but I smiled at him, hoping my smile would reassure him that I was fine.

“I’m so sorry that I haven’t been able to come see you…” I said, but he just smiled at me even more as I spoke.

“It’s okay, Cassia. I know being a royal has its list of jobs. I’m not mad at you at all. I missed you, and I figured that I could make the trip down here, so why not? And plus, you came here too, so that counts for a lot, don’t you think?” He asked, his eyebrows raising to emphasize his claim.

Marcus has always had a way of making me feel better even though I knew at times that I didn’t deserve it, like the way I felt right now.

I smiled lightly, my heart warming instantly.

“So! What have you been up to? Any new girlfriend your best friend should know about?” I asked, playfully smiling at him as I waited for a response.

I watch his face fall and then morph into something else. He seemed to really think about my question. I was beginning to get a little bit worried that something might have happened when he smiled up at me.

Using his shoulder to push mine a bit, I let out another pained growl this time, unable to hide it.

His face furrowed as I clutched my arm in pain.

“What happened, Cassia?” He asked, already on his knees and looking at me with so much concern.

I didn’t want him to worry, I tried to shove it off but the pain was unexplainable. I was unable to hide it as I walked in pain. Suddenly, I saw Marcus’ eyes glow yellow. He was using his night vision on me.

“What happened to you! What happened to your face? Your arms? What are all these marks and scars? What the f**k happened, Cassia?’ He shouted and stood up immediately, towering above me.

The pain had subsided and I followed him to stand up, breathing sharply and through my nose with force.

“I was attacked by some—“

“Did Lucius do this to you?” He asked me again, taking a step back away from me to fully look at me without his night vision.

“N-no-“

“Cassia, you’re covered in scars! What the hell!?” He yelled, balling his fists, rage running through his body as he began to tremble with the adrenaline rush.

I shook my head, nodding in the negative. Lucius may be a bastard but he wasn’t that. Marcus had to know that.

“Marcus, he didn’t do it.” I said calmly, hoping that if I spoke to him calmly, it would get him to settle down.

But as I reached out to him, he stepped further out of my reach.

“Lucius did that to you! He hit you! You’re covered in so many scars!” He shouted.

At this point, I knew that trying to talk my way out of this wouldn’t work. I tried to get closer but suddenly the metallic iron smell of b***d filled my nostrils.

Someone was bleeding and I used my eyes to check if Marcus was bleeding but he wasn’t.

If he wasn’t bleeding, then who was?

“Cassia! Are you bleeding?” Marcus asked me and I glanced at my body.

For the first time, I removed my left arm from where it was clutching my right arm, bringing it into the moonlight and I could feel so much liquid covering my palms.

My wounds had reopened. I heard Marcus gasp.

I heard Marcus growl so hard, I looked back at him.

“Honestly, it’s not what you think—“ Marcus had transformed into his wolf, and like the wind, he sprinted out of the cave.

“— Marcus!” I screamed into the night as Marcus ran out of the cave.

***

LUCIUS POV:

The air felt cleaner and drier here at my father’s house. I didn’t always come here but today felt like a day that needed me to come out here. At least to let my guilt eat at me till there was nothing left.

I had hurt Cassia for the last time and I could see just how much hurt and how much anger and hatred she displayed without second thinking.

She meant what her energy sends, she didn’t want anything to do with me and even though frankly, I have been trying to get rid of her, she would never believe that I didn’t want to get rid of her with the grizzly bears and that I actually just panicked and left. I had run away like the coward that I was and now I was the only one suffering for the consequences of my actions.

It bothered me that she decided I was simply too much work, I felt the urge to talk to her more and more each day she decided to ignore me. I missed her voicez I missed her smart mouth, I missed her cusses and I even missed her affection she so unbashfully shared with me.

I kicked some dried leaves into the bon fire that I had created outside at the backyard of the house. My father never came here again, not after the death of mom but I couldn’t stop coming here. It as a place for solace and cassia was the only girl I had ever beought here and it wasn’t even by accident.

As I kicked more dried leaves that surrounded the bon fire, I started to sense that I wasn’t alone. Quickly I stood up but my emotions were all over the place, I couldn’t concerntrate, k couldn’t function properly.

I looked around with my sharp eyes and when I saw nothing in the bushes that surrounded me, I decided to sit back down and enjoy the flames as they danced to the tunes of the air.

That’s when I saw the sharp eyes of something lurking in the bushes, my eyes widened in surprise but I didn’t have any time to wait or get surprised as this creature lunged for an attack.

I wasn’t lucky enough to evade the attack as I let out a pained animalistic growl.

I staggered as the animal came into full view, it was a werewolf and as I analyzed it’s scent, something about this particular wolf was familiar.

I could see the hate brew storms in it’s eyes before it got ready to lung another attack. This times, I was ready, even as I cluctched my arm that it had imbedded clawmarks that cut through my jacket, deeply into my forearm.

I was bleeding out and counting my breaths as it lunged for a second attack, roaring as it came sprang forth. I was ready for it this time, my legs nearly buckling underneath me as I immediately got the hell away from its path.